CVE-2007-2359 in BackupExec System Recovery
Summary
by MITRE
Buffer overflow in Ghost Service Manager, as used in Symantec Norton Ghost, Norton Save & Recovery, LiveState Recovery, and BackupExec System Recovery before 20070426, allows local users to gain privileges via a long string.
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Analysis
by VulDB Data Team • 10/17/2017
The vulnerability identified as CVE-2007-2359 represents a critical buffer overflow flaw within the Ghost Service Manager component of several Symantec recovery and backup solutions including Norton Ghost, Norton Save & Recovery, LiveState Recovery, and BackupExec System Recovery. This issue affects versions prior to the 20070426 release, indicating a significant window of exposure where systems could be exploited by malicious actors. The buffer overflow occurs within the service manager functionality that handles string inputs, creating a potential privilege escalation vector for local attackers who can manipulate input parameters through carefully crafted long strings.
The technical nature of this vulnerability stems from improper bounds checking within the Ghost Service Manager implementation. When processing user-supplied string data, the application fails to validate the length of input parameters before copying them into fixed-size buffers. This classic buffer overflow condition allows an attacker to overwrite adjacent memory locations, potentially corrupting program execution flow and enabling arbitrary code execution. The vulnerability specifically targets local users, meaning exploitation requires physical or network access to the target system, but the privilege escalation aspect makes it particularly dangerous as it could elevate a standard user account to system-level privileges.
From an operational impact perspective, this vulnerability poses significant risks to enterprise environments that rely on Symantec's backup and recovery solutions for critical system protection. Organizations using affected versions of these products face potential unauthorized system compromise, data exfiltration, and persistent access to their infrastructure. The local privilege escalation aspect means that even if attackers initially gain access through less privileged means, they could leverage this vulnerability to achieve complete system control. The widespread adoption of these Symantec products across various industries makes this vulnerability particularly concerning from a threat landscape standpoint.
The vulnerability maps to CWE-121, which specifically addresses stack-based buffer overflow conditions, and aligns with ATT&CK technique T1068, which covers privilege escalation through local exploits. Organizations should immediately implement the vendor-provided patch released on April 26, 2007, which addresses the buffer overflow by implementing proper input validation and bounds checking mechanisms. Additionally, system administrators should conduct comprehensive vulnerability assessments to identify any systems running affected versions and ensure proper access controls are in place to limit local user privileges where possible. Network segmentation and monitoring of service manager processes can help detect potential exploitation attempts, while regular security updates and patch management procedures should be enforced across all enterprise systems to prevent similar vulnerabilities from being exploited in the future.